Cigarette case

ABSTRACT

A cigarette package having a tab which when pulled on by a consumer opens the package and dispenses two cigarettes simultaneously.

Unlted States Patent 11 1 1111 3,923,239

Lee 1 51 Dec. 2, 1975 CIGARETTE CASE 1.6822104 8/1928 Andros 229/51 c2.129887 9/1938 Tamurin [76] inventor? Bong 2,283,102 5/1942 Stephano229/51 c Hannambong, Youngsan-ku, 2 415,117 2 1947 Tamarin 229/51 c xSeoul. Sou h Korea 2,474.166 6/1949 Rumsey. Jr 206/804 X 2,845,2137/1958 Tumurin i i 229/51 C Wed 1974 3.260405 7/1966 Frischer 229/51 c x121] App]. No.1 461,851

Primary ExaminerDavis T. Moorhead [30] Foreign Appllcatlon Priority DataMay 22, 1973 South Korea 3075 [52] U.S. Cl. 229/51 C; 229/87 C; 206/804[57] ABSTRACT [51] Int. Cl. B65D 5/54; B65D 17/00 {58] Field of Search206/804; 229/51 C, 87 C A cigarette package having a tab whi h h ll d onby a consumer opens the package and dispenses [56] References Cited twocigarettes simultaneously.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 121.860 12/1871 Evans 7. 206/804 X 8 Claims, 13Drawing Figures US. Patent Dec. 2, 1975 Sheet 1 of 3 3,923,239

US. Patent Dec. 2, 1975 Sheet 2 of3 3,923,239

Shet 3 of 3 US. Patent Dec. 2, 1975 CIGARETTE CASE CROSS REFERENCE TORELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority of KoreanApplication No. 3075 filed May 22, 1973.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This inventionrelates to cigarette packages. Specifically it relates to a cigarettepackage equipped with a pull tab which allows a user to open the packageand dispense the first two cigarettes in one step.

2. Description of the Prior Art At present, the typical manner in whicha cigarette package is opened is by initially tearing the upper portionof the package with ones fingers and then by tapping the package withhis other hand forcing the first several cigarettes out of the package.Another known device and method for opening a cigarette package consistsof a thread which is attached to a tape connected to the upper portionof the cigarette package. In the latter case, the thread is pulledupwardly exerting a force on the tape to open the package. Both of thesemethods are inefficient and inconvenient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention provides a cigarette packageadapted to be easily and efficiently opened and facilitates cigaretteremoval from the pack concommitant with opening of the package.

The cigarette package of the invention is provided with a tab or cuttingmember. The tab is made preferably of cellophane and attaches to theinside of one of the lateral sides of the cigarette package. The side ofthe tab facing inwardly is provided with adhesive material which adheresto the two cigarettes adjacent the side of the cigarette pack. The tabextends from the inside of the pack and folds at the top at a rightangle to an intermediate location below the top flaps and con ventionalsealing tape. The tab is folded back over'the top flaps of the cigarettepackage to a position where the end thereof is exposed for access by theconsumer. When the consumer opens the cigarette package of the presentinvention, he merely pulls outwardly on the exposed end of the tab,thereby tearing half of the top of the package of cigarettes along theedges. Due to the adhesion of the tab to two cigarettes in the package,these two cigarettes are pulled up with the tab. This results in greatease and efficiency in opening the package. The operations performed bythis invention when the outward force is applied to the tabs are asfollows:

1. Half of the top of the cigarette package is torn along the edges;

2. The torn portion of the cigarette package top is removed;

3. Two cigarettes are pulled upwardly so that they extend from thepackage; and

4. The tab is separated from the cigarettes which have been pulled upfor easy access.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS This invention can be betterunderstood with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a view of the cigarette package depicting the location of thetab within the package;

FIG. 2 is a sectional elevational view of the interior of the cigarettepackage which shows the position of the tab before it is pulled;

FIG. 3 is a sectional elevational view of the cigarette package similarto FIG. 2 but showing the position of the tab when it has been pulled toopen the cigarette package;

FIG. 4 is a sectional elevational view similar to FIG. 2 showing theposition of the tab after it has been pulled to elevate the first twocigarettes;

FIG. 5 is a development view showing the position of the tab withrelation to the cigarette package blank which will be folded to form thecigarette package;

FIG. 6 is a transparent development view showing the position of the tabwhen the cigarette package is partially assembled;

FIG. 7 is a development view showing the position of the tab after thetop of the package has been folded;

FIG. 8 is a view of the cigarette package in the fully assembled state;

FIG. 9 is a sectional elevational view of the location of the cuttingmember along line IVIV of FIG. 5.

FIG. 10 is an isometric view of the cigarette package of the inventionwith an arrow showing the direction in which force must be applied tothe tab to open the package;

FIG. 11 is a view of the cigarette package of FIG. 10 showing theposition of the tab after the package has been opened;

FIG. 12 is a view of the cigarette package of FIG. 10 after the tab hasopened the package and has drawn a portion of the first two cigarettesfrom the package; and

FIG. 13 is a view of this cigarette package of FIG. 10 after the tab hasbeen separated from the cigarette package.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT According to this invention, atab 1 preferably made of cellophane, is adhered along an intermediateportion thereof, to the upper inner portion of one lateral side of thecigarette package blank 2. The adhesion of the tab 1 to the blank 2 isbest seen in FIGS. 5 and 9.

The cigarette package blank 2 of FIGS. 1 and 5 is provided withlongitudinal top flap members 5 and 6, respectively, and lateral sides 7and 8, respectively. The top flap members 5 and 6 are provided withslots 9 and 10 which align when the cigarette package is in theassembled state.

The tab 1 is provided with any conventional adhesive 4 to adhere to thecigarettes adjacent the tab 1 and conventional adhesive 11, best seen inFIG. 9, to adhere to the lateral side 7 of the cigarette package.Optional score lines 12 and 13, best seen in FIG. 13, may be formed onthe tab 1 to facilitate folding of the tab 1 along line 12 at the topedge of the cigarette package and through the opening in the top of thepackage formed by slots 9 and 10.

As best seen in FIG. 9, the cigarette package blank 2 is provided withvertical fold lines 14, 15, 16, 1 7 and horizontal fold lines 21 and 22.The package sections between fold lines l4, l5 and 16, 17 form lateralsides 7 and 8 respectively. The package section between fold lines 15,16 and 14, 17 form longitudinal sides 18 and 19 respectively. Thematerial below fold line 22 forms the package bottom 20. The blank 2also has the tab 1 which is preferably releasably adhered to lateralside 7 at an upper location with a portion extending beyond the edge ofthe blank 2.

In the assembly of the cigarette package of this invention, a central orintermediate part of the tab 1 is adhered to the inner upper portion oflateral side 7. At the same time, when the wrapping paper or cigarettepackage blank 2 forms the cigarette case or package, the tab 1 is foldedat a right angle at the top edge of lateral side 7 to extend inwardlyalong the top of the cigarettes below flap members 5 and 6 to an openingformed by slots 9 and 10. As best seen in FIG. 7, the tab 1 extendsthrough the opening formed by slots 9 and and is folded back again overthe outside of flaps 5 and 6 toward the edge of lateral side 7 toprovide an exposed tab end. As seen in FIG. 8, assembly of the packageis completed by securing the conventional sealing tape 3 to seal thepackage.

In operation, the consumer opens the new cigarette package of thisinvention by pulling the exposed tab end in the direction of the arrowshown in FIG. 10. As the tab 1 moves in the direction of the arrow, thetab 1 tears the top of the cigarette package from the opening formed byslots 9 and 10 to the top edge of lateral side 7. When the tab 1 hasbeen pulled beyond the point wherein half of the cigarette package tophas been removed, the two cigaretts adjacent tab 1 are drawn upwardlyfrom the cigarette package as best seen in FIG. 12. Finally, when thetab member has elevated the cigarettes to the position shown in FIG. 13,the tab 1 is separated from the cigarettes and removed from the package.

As previously indicated, the tab or cutting member 1 of this inventionprovides the consumer with considerable convenience in opening the newcigarette package and in removing cigarettes therefrom. Further, theconstruction of the tab and the production of the composite cigarettepackage provide a very simple assembly operation.

I claim:

. A cigarette package comprising:

. a top;

. a front;

. a back;

. two sides;

. folded top flaps connected to the front and back of the package havingaligned intermediate transverse slots therein;

f. a tab, having a width dimension the same as the cigarette package,releasably adhering to the inside of a lateral side of the package andcontinuously extending below said folded top flaps from said lateralside to the opening formed by the aligned slots in said folded top flapsand above said flaps from said opening back toward said lateral side;and

g. means for releasably attaching said tab to a cigarette;

whereby pulling said tab in the direction of said lateral side opens thetop of the package and draws the cigarette up through the open top.

2. The cigarette package of claim 1 wherein the tab releasably adheresto a plurality of cigarettes.

3. The cigarette package of claim 1 further comprising score lines toenable the tab to fold at the edge of said lateral side and at thelocation wherein the tab passes through the opening formed by thealigned slots.

4. A blank for forming a cigarette package having formed thereonsections for two longitudinal sides and two lateral sides, two flapmembers to form a top, two flap members to form a bottom, slotsvertically disposed centrally of the two flap members arranged to formthe top thereof, said slots arranged for alignment in the assembledpackage state, a tab, having a width dimension the same as the cigarettepackage, connected to the blank along the top of one lateral sidesection, said tab extending above the top of the blank a distancegreater than one-half the length of a longitudinal side of the blank; anadhesive applied to the tab at the lower outside portion thereofarranged to releasably adhere to the upper portion of two cigaretteswhen a package is assembled from the blank and filled with cigarettes.

5. The blank of claim 4 further comprising wherein the top length of thetab extending above the blank is equal to the length of a longitudinalside, in the tab a first score line coinciding with the upper edge ofthe lateral section of the blank to which it is attached and; a secondscore line located a distance from the first score line that is equal toone-half the length of the portion of the blank that defines the frontof the cigarette package.

6. In a cigarette package having a first longitudinal side, a secondlongitudinal side, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, abottom, a first top flap from the top of the first longitudinal sideextending into the area defined by the cigarette package, a second topflap from the second longitudinal side extending into the area definedby the cigarette package, and a sealing tape, the improvementcomprising:

a. intermediately disposed aligned slots in the top flaps;

b. a tab, having a width dimension the same as the cigarette package,releasably adhering to the inside of a lateral side of said cigarettepackage, which tab has a score line coinciding with the top of said sideand which tab is folded along said score line to lie under the foldedtop flaps and extends through the slots in the top flaps and is foldedback over the top flaps toward the lateral side to which it is attachedto extend beyond the sealing tape; and

c. whereby a pulling force on the top portion extending beyond thesealing tape tears open the portion of the top flaps which is in contactwith the tab.

7. The cigarette package of claim 6 further comprising th the tab asecond score line located a distance from the first score line that isequal to the distance from the lateral side to which the tab is adheredto the slots in the top.

8. The cigarette package of claim 6 further comprising, in the portionof the tab located inside the cigarette package, two adhesive points toadhere to two separate cigarettes which face said side when the packageis filled with cigarettes and whereby removal of the tab above theopening in the package. l= I

1. A cigarette package comprising: a. a top; b. a front; c. a back; d. two sides; e. folded top flaps connected to the front and back of the package having aligned intermediate transverse slots therein; f. a tab, having a width dimension the same as the cigarette package, releasably adhering to the inside of a lateral side of the package and continuously extending below said folded top flaps from said lateral side to the opening formed by the aligned slots in said folded top flaps and above said flaps from said opening back toward said lateral side; and g. means for releasably attaching said tab to a cigarette; whereby pulling said tab in the direction of said lateral side opens the top of the package and draws the cigarette up through the open top.
 2. The cigarette package of claim 1 wherein the tab releasably adheres to a plurality of cigarettes.
 3. The cigarette package of claim 1 further comprising score lines to enable the tab to fold at the edge of said lateral side and at the location wherein the tab passes through the opening formed by the aligned slots.
 4. A blank for forming a cigarette package having formed thereon sections for two longitudinal sides and two lateral sides, two flap members to form a top, two flap members to form a bottom, slots vertically disposed centrally of the two flap members arranged to form the top thereof, said slots arranged for alignment in the assembled package state, a tab, having a width dimension the same as the cigarette package, connected to the blank along the top of one lateral side section, said tab extending above the top of the blank a distance greater than one-half the length of a longitudinal side of the blank; an adhesive applied to the tab at the lower outside portion thereof arranged to releasably adhere to the upper portion of two cigarettes when a package is assembled from the blank and filled with cigarettes.
 5. The blank of claim 4 further comprising wherein the top length of the tab extending above the blank is equal to the length of a longitudinal side, in the tab a first score line coinciding with the upper edge of the lateral section of the blank to which it is attached and; a second score line located a distance from the first score line that is equal to one-half the length of the portion of the blank that defines the front of the cigarette package.
 6. In a cigarette package having a first longitudinal side, a second longitudinal side, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, a bottom, a first top flap from the top of the first longitudinal side extending into the area defined by the cigarette package, a second top flap from the second longitudinal side extending into the area defined by the cigarette package, and a sealing tape, the improvement comprising: a. intermediately disposed aligned slots in the top flaps; b. a tab, having a width dimension the same as the cigarette package, releasably adhering to the inside of a lateral side of said cigarette package, whIch tab has a score line coinciding with the top of said side and which tab is folded along said score line to lie under the folded top flaps and extends through the slots in the top flaps and is folded back over the top flaps toward the lateral side to which it is attached to extend beyond the sealing tape; and c. whereby a pulling force on the top portion extending beyond the sealing tape tears open the portion of the top flaps which is in contact with the tab.
 7. The cigarette package of claim 6 further comprising th the tab a second score line located a distance from the first score line that is equal to the distance from the lateral side to which the tab is adhered to the slots in the top.
 8. The cigarette package of claim 6 further comprising, in the portion of the tab located inside the cigarette package, two adhesive points to adhere to two separate cigarettes which face said side when the package is filled with cigarettes and whereby removal of the tab from the package elevates the tops of the two cigarettes above the opening in the package. 